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Arts commission reports expanded public‑art activity and grants; Select Board appoints Allison Adair as poet laureate
Summary
The Brookline Commission for the Arts reported increased grant activity and public‑art installations funded with Mass Cultural Council and ARPA money; the Select Board appointed Allison Adair as the town’s poet laureate for a three‑year term beginning July 1, 2025.
The Brookline Commission for the Arts reported on its 2024–25 activities at the Select Board meeting, describing a portfolio of small grants, public‑art installations and community events supported with state Mass Cultural Council funding and local ARPA funds.
The commission said it awarded 25 small local grants (14 to Brookline‑based applicants) using roughly $18,300 from the Mass Cultural Council and an additional $10,000 provided by the town from ARPA funds; grantees’ events drew an estimated 12,000 participants, and projects included public utility‑box artwork, performances, school collaborations, concerts and senior‑center programming. The commission urged the Select Board to consider an annual town match of future Mass Cultural Council grants and discussed a longer‑term idea to set a public‑art allocation (for example, a 1% of new development policy) to sustain maintenance and new installations.
The Select Board then appointed Allison Adair as Brookline’s next poet laureate for a three‑year term beginning July 1, 2025 and ending June 30, 2028. The board voted unanimously to approve the appointment; commissioners and Select Board members praised the town’s arts initiatives and encouraged continued support for public art and school partnerships.
